The Autobiography of Phineas Pett
day, accompanied with my brother Peter, I took oars to Gravesend,
and from thence rode home, being taken with a fit upon Gad's Hill,
with much ado recovering my own house, presently taking my chamber,
and being dangerously sick; from whence I did not stir down stairs
till Christmas holidays after; which happened ill for my business at
Woolwich, where in my absence, through the careless neglect of the
foremen, the workmen made wonderful spoil and havoc.
The next week after I took my sickness, and the news thereof, brought
to London, came to the ears of the Lord Admiral, who acquainted his
Majesty therewith; whereupon I received two several letters from the
Lord Admiral by post, and special commandment from his Majesty to
be certified the truth, and to let me know that, if I needed, some
of his own physicians should be sent unto me; which exceeding great
grace from his Majesty and expression of love from the Lord Admiral
was no small comfort unto me in my extremity.
The end of this month my wife's cook-maid died in the house, and was
buried on New Year's Day.
The seventh of January, I returned from Chatham to Woolwich with my
wife and some of my children and family; and because my lodgings at
the Dock were not fitted, I lay in the town at the house of a widow
woman called Mistress Spicke, for the space of a month, till the
lodgings in the King's Yard were prepared and made ready.
The 14th of February, I began to victual all the shipwrights and
workmen employed upon the Merhonor and Defiance at Woolwich.
The 28th of March it pleased God miraculously to preserve me from
loss of life by a fall on board the Honor, which was only from deck
to deck, by God's merciful providence very hardly escaping to fall
into the hold, which would have beat me all to pieces.
The 14th of June, my honourable and implacable enemy, the Earl of
Northampton, departed this life at his house at Charing Cross.
The 22nd of July, the King of Denmark came suddenly to Somerset House
unexpected.
The first of August, my gracious master, King James, accompanied with
the King of Denmark, Prince of Wales, Lord Admiral, and many other
lords, came to Woolwich and went on board the Merhonor, then being in
dry dock and almost finished, which ship liked them wondrous well:
here our King took leave of his Majesty of Denmark and returned to
Whitehall. From hence the King of Denmark took barge to Gravesend,
being accompanied with the Prince and Lord Admiral; Sir Robert
Mansell and myself were commanded to attend them.
The second of August, the King of Denmark was entertained on board
the Prince, riding at her moorings in the river of Chatham, the
Prince of Wales and the Lord Admiral of England accompanying him, Sir
Robert Mansell and myself attending. The ship was completely rigged
and all her sails at the yards, and richly adorned with ensigns and
pendants, all of silk, which gave very great content to the King of
Denmark; yet it was a very foul rainy day. From thence they returned
to Gravesend, where they took leave and the King of Denmark embarked
in his own ships.
In the end of November, all the workmen that wrought upon the
Merhonor were discharged from Woolwich.
The 6th of March,[434] the Merhonor and Defiance were both launched
out of the dry dock at Woolwich in one tide, and the 25th day of
April following they set sail from Woolwich, and the next day came to
their moorings at Chatham.
In May the dock at Woolwich was prepared for the receiving in of the
Elizabeth Jonas and the Triumph, who were appointed to be new built;
which ships were accordingly brought from Chatham, and were both
brought into the dock, the first and second days of June, and the
gates shut again and the ships shored.
The 25th of July, the Lord's Grace of Canterbury lay at Rochester,
and went on board the Prince, riding at her moorings, where he was
entertained with a banquet of sweetmeats by Sir Robert Mansell,
myself attending there.
The 29th of August, I removed from Woolwich to Chatham with my wife
and family, and the next day after my wife sickened of a surfeit,
eating too many grapes, which had like to have cost her her life.
The 9th of October, my wife was delivered of her 7th child, being
a son, between the hours of 10 and 11 [o']clock at night: the 22nd
day after he was baptized at Chatham Church and called by mine own
name, Phineas; the witnesses were Mr. Robert Yardley and Mr. King,
godfathers, and my sister Simonson, the godmother.
About the 27th day of March I bargained with Sir Walter Ralegh[435]
for to build him a ship of 500 tons, which I procured leave for from
the Lord Admiral, to build her in the galley dock in his Majesty's
Yard at Woolwich, towards which I presently received 500_l._ to begin
withal, and the 8th day of April following I began to set men on work
upon her.
The 8th day of April, I bought a piece of ground of one Christopher
Collier, lying in a place called the Brook at Chatham, for which I
paid him 35_l._ ready moneys.
The 18th day of April, I was elected and sworn Master of the
Corporation of Shipwrights at our common hall and meeting place at
Redriff.
The 13th day of May, I bought the rest of the land at the Brook,
of John Griffin and Robert Griffin, brothers, and a lease of their
sister, belonging to the College of Rochester.
The 22nd of May, I removed my wife and some of my family from Chatham
to Woolwich.
In July Sir Henry Mainwaring caused me to build a small pinnace of
40 tons for the Lord Zouch, being then Lord Warden of the Cinque
Ports, which pinnace was launched the 2nd of August and presently
rigged and fitted, all at my charge; and the 6th day we set sail with
her from Woolwich accompanied with Sir Walter Ralegh and his sons,
Sir Henry Mainwaring, Mr. Christopher Hamon,[436] cousin William
Hawkridge,[437] myself, son, and divers others. The first tide we
anchored [at] Gravesend; next night at the North Foreland; next
tide in the Downs, where we landed and rode to Dover Castle in the
Lord Warden's coach, sent purposely for us, leaving the pinnace to
be brought in to Dover Pier with the pilot and mariners. We stayed
at Dover till the 16th of August and then took leave of the Lord
Warden, and came to Woolwich the 17th day at night.
Towards the whole of the hull of the pinnace and all her rigging
and furniture I received only 100_l._ from the Lord Zouch, the rest
Sir Henry Mainwaring cunningly received in my behalf, without my
knowledge, which I could never get from him but by piece-meal, so
that by the bargain I was loser 100_l._ at least.
The 3rd day [of] December following, died my brother Cooper at
Chatham. The 16th of December I launched the great ship of Sir
Walter Ralegh's called the Destiny, and had much ado to get her into
the water, but I delivered her to him on float in good order and
fashion; by which business I lost 700_l._ and could never get any
recompense at all for it, Sir Walter Ralegh going to sea and leaving
me unsatisfied.
This year of 1617 proved a very fatal and troublesome year unto me.
The 14th day of March I removed my wife and family from Woolwich to
my house at Chatham, she being so big with child that I was forced
to carry her by coach, and that very leisurely for that she was with
child with two twins. The 20th of this month my wife's own father
died at his house at Highwood Hill.
The 15th day of April my wife was safely delivered of two daughters
at 12 of the clock at night: they were both baptized in Chatham
Church the 22nd day in the afternoon, being Tuesday; the eldest named
Mary; the other Martha.
About the midst of May, I was sent for by the Lord Treasurer, then
Earl of Suffolk, and Sir Fulke Greville, then Chancellor of the
Exchequer, and by them employed in a most troublesome business into
the New Forest in Hampshire, where one Sir Giles Mompesson[438] had
made a vast waste in the spoil of his Majesty's timber, to redress
which I was employed thither to make choice, out of the number of
trees he had felled, of all such timber as was useful for shipping;
in which business I spent a great deal of time, and brought myself
into a great deal of trouble.
The 6th of November my daughter Mary, the eldest of the twins,
departed this life at Chatham, and was buried 2 days after at Chatham.
The 8th day of December my young son Phineas departed this life after
he had lived 2 years 2 months and odd days,[439] and was buried at
Chatham.
My dear loving wife sickened at Chatham the 29th day of December, and
hardly escaped with life, yet it pleased God she did recover.
The last of this month my brother Simonson made himself away in the
garret of his own house at Ratcliff, to the utter undoing of his poor
wife and children.
In the month of June[440] there was a commission granted by his
Majesty to certain Commissioners for the reformation of the abuses in
his Majesty's Navy, the names of which Commissioners were Sir Lionel
Cranfield,[441] Sir Thomas Smith,[442] Sir Richard Weston,[443] Sir
Francis Gofton,[444] Sir Richard Sutton,[445] Mr. John Coke,[446]
Mr. Pitt[447] of the Exchequer, Sir John Osborne, Sir John
Wolstenholme,[448] Mr. Burrell, and Captain Thomas Norreys.
The 6th day of July these Commissioners came to Chatham in great
state, having called to assist them divers masters of the Trinity
House and divers shipwrights of the river of Thames, where,
commanding also the masters and master shipwrights of his Majesty's
Navy, they went on board the Prince and there publicly caused their
Commission to be read, the Officers of the Navy being present; which
done they proceeded to give order for a general survey of all the
ships in the Navy, with all their furniture, and all other things
belonging unto them; in the which was spent a great deal of time,
for they returned not to London till the 16th day of the month
after. Myself was commanded in particular from his Majesty to give
them the best assistance I could, which accordingly I did with all
diligence and carefulness; which proved afterwards to the ruin and
undoing to me and all mine, the whole bent of Mr. Burrell tending
only to overthrow me and root my name out of the earth, by his means
procuring most part of the Commissioners to join with him in his
malicious practice; so that from the time that he was settled, I
was sequestered from meddling with any business, and all employments
and privileges taken from me, Captain Norreys being brought over me,
and I forced to live as a slave under them the whole of the time of
their Commission, undergoing many disgraces and contempts which I
could not possibly have undergone had not the Lord been exceedingly
merciful unto me in giving me patience to submit myself to his will
and pleasure.
The whole year of '18, '19 and part of '20, I attended altogether at
Chatham, being employed upon the making of the new dock and other
businesses under the command of the Commissioners; the reward of my
extraordinary pains was recompensed with no other reward than base
usage and continual counsels and plats to ruin me, wherein they
obtained the sum of their desires to the utter undoing of me and
mine; Mr. Burrell and Norreys my greatest enemies.
The 24th of January in this present year my wife was delivered of a
young son at Chatham, who was, the 3rd day of the next month, being
Sunday, baptized in Chatham Church by Mr. Pyham; his name called
Phineas. The witnesses were my wife's sister Russell and niece
Hawkridge, godmothers, my nephews Peter and William Pett, godfathers.
The 19th day of this present month of July in the year 1619, the
great Duke of Buckingham, lately made the Lord Admiral of England,
came to visit the Navy then riding at Chatham, being accompanied with
divers lords and Sir Robert Mansell; who in his being here used me